
Dr. Edwin Ziegfeld, who taught fine arts at Teachers College of Columbia University for more than 30 years, died Sept. 12 at his home in Claremont, Calif. He was 82 years old. For many years, he headed the school's Department of Fine and Industrial Arts. Dr. Ziegfeld, a native of Columbus, Ohio, retired from Teachers College in 1970 with the title of professor emeritus. He was a founder of the International Society for Education Through Art and the first president of the National Arts Education Association. He wrote and lectured frequently and was the editor of a 1953 publication for UNESCO called ''Creative Teaching in the Visual Arts,'' which included contributions by Henri Matisse, Herbert Read and Jean Piaget.
Dr. Edwin Ziegfeld was the first president of InSEA, serving this organization from 1951-1960. He was an incredibly talented leader and educator, serving as Head and faculty in the Department of Fine and Industrial Arts at Teachers College of Columbia University in New York. He was an active Dr. Edwin Ziegfeld was the first president of InSEA, Serving this organization from 1951-1960. author and frequent lecturer all over the world. Aside from the importance of his work for InSEA, he was most proud of the Owatonna Project he participated in from 1933-1938. The Owatonna Project, according to Al Hurwitz (http://hurwitz.tc.columbia.edu/taxonomy/term/36) was a “classic example of social reconstructionist or practical life centered curriculum. This project responded to the needs of the citizenry, promoting and advising on home decorations, art in public places, landscaping, and even window display, thus demonstrating that art can be public as well as private and personal as well as utilitarian, and that art teachers are capable of raising the general aesthetic level of an entire community.” ( Deborah Smith-Shank, 2017)